Climbing our first Munro!

A BEGINNERS GUIDE TO CLIMBING A MUNRO

A Munro is a Scottish mountain over 3000m (or 915m) in height. The sport of ‘Munro bagging’ in Scotland is huge, with over 5,690 people having ‘compleated’ all 282 of them. Last weekend we climbed our first Munro, Ben Vorlich or ‘The Hill of the bay’ which stands 985m above Loch Earn in Perthshire. Here is what I learnt from climbing a Munro.

You will be really proud of yourself

Putting it bluntly, climbing continually upwards for at least 2 hours, above 3000ft is hard, hard work, whatever your fitness. Even if, like us, you choose an ‘easy Munro’ for your first bag (which just means easy navigation on accessible paths) it certainly doesn’t belittle the height or the challenge that you will face. However, when you see the trig point finally appearing out of the mist, not only will you feel quite frankly, blessed relief, but also total and utter exhilaration.

…but Munro climbing is for anyone

You will be surprised as to who you will meet on the mountainside; our favourites were the strange apparition of a man running up the mountain, dressed like he’d seen the top from the loch side and just decided that moment ‘I’m climbing that’, to an elderly man and his even more elderly sheepdog reaching the top ahead of us. We were actually some of the youngest climbers on the mountainside; remember that if you think you can do it, well, you can.

‘Be Prepared’ should be the Scottish mountain motto

Scotland’s weather is unpredictable at the best of times without adding elevation to it. One moment we were walking in hot sunshine, my bare shoulders getting a suntan, the next we were plunged into thick, freezing mist and 25mph winds, and that was only halfway up the mountain. In May. I wore 3 layers, including a fleece and carried extra waterproof trousers, a hat, scarf, gloves, factor 30 sunscreen and carried (and drank) a giant 32 ozHydro Flask of water.

You will get a warm welcome

Like most walkers, we always greet those taking on the same challenge and in return we were rewarded with nods of heads, painful grins, and lots of “‘Not long to go! Keep going” type encouragement. From the girls at the top who broke off from having a celebratory beer to take our picture with the trig, to the ladies having a rest halfway up who congratulated us on our first Munro – and reminded us to toast to Vorlich when we got safely down – the warmth we received on the mountain made us feel like we’d become part of a secret clan.

Climbing a mountain is more than the view

Whilst most people you meet on the mountainside are full of encouragement there will always be one who moans “It’s steep, it’s freezing and there is nothing to see” as they pass. It almost got to me – but I just kept going. If, like for us, the visibility for most of the way up is zero, don’t forget the Scot’s philosophy of if you don’t like the weather, just wait a few minutes; when the clouds do eventually clear the view is spectacular.

It is completely addictive

On the way up, in between fighting for breath, a hundred thoughts went through my head. If I’d seen this mountain before I’d started I wouldn’t have climbed it. I’m not as fit as I thought I was. This mountain is going to break me. Seriously, a false summit? Thank god for midget gems. I might just need a little sit-down. Just give me 10 minutes…. Then I found myself standing on the very top of the mountain, with the biggest smile on my face and I immediately started planning my next Munro…

Thanks to Tiso who sent me a brilliant Hydro Flask. One of the biggest issues I found when we were mountain climbing was keeping hydrated in the warm weather and this huge flask kept our water cold – a life saver!

… and finally, I haven’t spelt compleated wrong, it is the traditional way of saying you have climbed all the Munros – the first person to compleat all the Munros was Reverend A. E. Robertson in 1901!

That’s the first I’d heard about ‘compleated’, interesting! You’re so right about it being friendly when you’re out hiking. Like-minded people challenging themselves and loving the outdoors, gotta love it :).

I love your site design and the way you showcased your photos. Mountain climbing might not be allll about the view, but it doesn’t hurt to see something beautiful. Funnily enough I shared a post about Scotland too on #MyFavouriteTrip this week, but I was only there for a weekend so saw a very small amount. It is definitely somewhere I will be returning.

Gorgeous photos and scenery. I’d love to climb a mountain with my kids one day. I climbed Mount Snowdon in 1993 (I was 12) but never done it again. I really enjoyed it though so it’s on my to-do list. Sarah #MyFavouriteTrip

Lovely! I couldn’t tell you how many I’ve climbed because I’ve never kept a note – quite a few, some more than once and Ben Lomond several times because it’s so accessible from Glasgow. It is a cliché (and always busy) but I think it’s still my favourite view. I haven’t climbed anything that big for a while unfortunately – foot and knee issues 🙁

Well done for completing (or should I say compleating) this – what an achievement! I hope we see more amazing munro hikes like these in the future. Your surroundings and views whilst hiking, and at the top, are just beautiful!

Love this post! I’ve only bagged one, Cairn Gorm, but from that I definitely agree with all your tips. And especially that it is addictive – I’d love to add to my list of “compleated”! Thanks for linking up 🙂